Second place Brno start just fine for Rossi

On the front row once more for the Cardion ab Grand Prix Ceske republiky, Valentino Rossi was having a tough time pushing to take pole position from title rival Casey Stoner. The Fiat Yamaha man was eventually left to settle with second on the grid, a position from which he has taken two of his four victories in the 2008 season.

`It was a difficult, difficult practice, because at the beginning it was just normal wetness. Then, twenty minutes in, the amount of water on the track was incredible. For that reason it was difficult to open to full throttle on the straight. It became impossible to improve the lap times or try something for the setting,´ lamented Rossi, like Stoner suffering from a minor illness this weekend in the form of an ear infection.

Rossi was last on pole at the Italian round of the World Championship back in May, but since then he has picked up a further three front row starts as Stoner has gone on a run of six straight poles. For the five-time MotoGP World Champion, missing out on the Tissot watch awarded to the poleman is not as pressing an issue as being in a position to fight for the win.

`I´m happy with second position on the grid, because being on the front row is so important for tomorrow. We are hoping for better conditions, because we are a bit faster in the dry,´ he explains, whilst refusing to make a concrete prediction or goal for the Brno race.

`It is difficult to say what position I would be happy with, because we have to see what the conditions are like. In the dry we have two or three things to modify but, whatever happens, we are in a good position now and will have to see how the 22 laps go.´